Commuters have been promised more space after South West Trains completed the roll-out of an extra 108 carriages on some of its busiest routes.

The train operator said on Wednesday (June 22) that the £65m investment in new and refurbished carriages meant peak services could now accommodate more than 23,000 additional passengers.

It said extra carriages were now in operation on 19 morning and 26 evening services on its Windsor, Weybridge, Staines and Hounslow lines, as well as being introduced on services elsewhere.

SWT said the new carriages, introduced as part of the Government's High Level Output Specification Programme (HLOS), featured wider doors, improved seating, full CCTV and new flooring.

Inside one of South West Trains' refurbished Class 456 carriages (Image: SWT)

It said another 150 brand new carriages would be introduced from next year, further increasing capacity across its network on which more than half a million passenger journeys are made each day.

Christian Roth, managing director of South West Trains, said: "The completion of this multi-million pound scheme is excellent news for passengers travelling on one of Europe's busiest railways.

"We are now operating more than 1,400 carriages and providing well over half a million journeys every day and the completion of this significant investment means we are able to provide more space for more passengers than ever before."